Sport

Gutsy Choi revels in gusty conditions

South Korea's KJ Choi struck the first shot of the 2007 PGA Tour and then surged into a five-way tie for the lead at the Mercedes…

Fri Jan 05 2007 - 00:00

South Korea's KJ Choi struck the first shot of the 2007 PGA Tour and then surged into a five-way tie for the lead at the Mercedes-Benz Championship at a windy Kapalua Resort in Hawaii.

Choi fired a four-under-par 69 to set the pace with Fiji's Vijay Singh, Canadian Stephen Ames and Americans Brett Wetterich and Will MacKenzie.

Producing superb approach play in the gusty conditions, Choi picked up four shots in five holes from the fifth before finishing in style with his sixth birdie of the day at the last.

"As far as my swing and my putting are concerned, everything is feeling good," the 36-year-old, speaking through an interpreter, told reporters.

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"I live in Texas where there's a lot of wind so windy conditions don't really bother me. I think it's all about how the body adjusts when you're playing in these conditions.

The Mercedes-Benz Championship launches the inaugural FedExCup, a season-long points competition culminating in a four-event playoff series with $10 million to be won by the overall champion.

Choi, who holds the Plantation Course record with a 62 in the third round of the 2003 tournament, said he did not experience any added pressure striking the first drive of the season.

"I hit it just like a regular tee shot with a mind-set that I've got to hit the fairway," added the Korean, who teed off in the first pairing with Australia's Adam Scott. "It was just like any other first tee shot in any other tournament."

Former world number one Singh, runner-up here twice in the last three years, matched Choi with a haul of six birdies and two bogeys.

"I've had great finishes over here and I'm very comfortable on this golf course," said the Fijian, who booked his place in the winners-only field with victory at last year's Barclays Classic.

"But this wind was something else. I've been here seven or eight times and this is probably the gustiest it's ever been.

World number two Jim Furyk, champion here in 2001, returned a 71 while Australia's Stuart Appleby, bidding for a fourth successive victory at Kapalua, carded a 73.

Thirty-four players are competing in the elite-field event which brings together all the title-holders from the previous PGA Tour season.

Notable absentees are world number one Tiger Woods, who announced last week he would not be playing, and Masters champion Phil Mickelson.